It appears that reports of the Southeastern Conference's death were greatly exaggerated.

For more than a week, critics and pundits alike had been celebrating what appeared to be demise of the SEC. After seven consecutive national championships won by a team from a league some consider to be the best conference in college football, it appeared that streak was coming to an unceremonious end after Auburn beat top-ranked Alabama in last week's Iron Bowl.

The door was clearly opened for Florida State and Ohio State to take full advantage of the situation. All they had to do was win their respective conference championship games Saturday and all in the college football world would be right.

Easier said than done.

Ohio State, winners of 24 straight games, looked nothing like the second-best team in the country during its game against Michigan State Saturday night, proving all of those Big Ten haters correct in questioning the Buckeyes' validity as a national championship contender.

The Spartans stunned Urban Meyer's team 34-24 upset win in the Big Ten Championship. It was a victory that put to end one of the most hotly-contested subjects debated in print, on the air and at lunch counters across the country: Is a one-loss SEC team better than an undefeated Big Ten team?

Apparently it is.

That debate picked up steam Saturday afternoon after third-ranked Auburn ran roughshod over fifth-ranked Missouri in one of the high-scoring and most entertaining SEC Championship Games ever: a 59-42 win.

Even as the confetti and streamers were floating down from the rafters of the Georgia Dome, the politicking was in full swing, with Auburn coach Gus Malzahn throwing in his two-cents about his team's chances on playing for a BCS National Championship Game — it's second in three seasons.

"We just won the best league in the country," he said. "When you play this schedule, you deserve it."

Missouri coach Gary Pinkel, who had just watched his team get torched for 545 yards rushing (304 of them by Auburn running back Tre Mason) added his opinion after the game, saying, "I really think, with the strength of schedule the SEC is, from a guy coming from the Big 12, I think it certainly has to be considered without question. I would hope that it is."

Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs had been among the most vocal champions of the Tigers and SEC. When asked about it again Saturday night after Auburn's win, Jacobs told Andy Staples of Sports Illustrated: "I have nine words. Strength of schedule. Strength of schedule. Strength of schedule."

Jacobs is right.

If you take a closer look at their schedule, the Tigers faced six ranked teams — all from the SEC — including the final three games against No. 25 Georgia, No. 1 Alabama and No. 5 Missouri. Ohio State faced three ranked teams: No. 23 Wisconsin, No. 16 Northwestern and No. 10 Michigan State.

It's hard to argue against the numbers.

Next season, the new College Football Playoff will be decided by a selection committee that will take into consideration things such as strength of schedule as well as quality of wins. No more computer rankings that make no sense.

This year, Michigan State helped settle the debate and gave the mighty SEC one more chance to extend its BCS streak.

As the college football regular season wraps up, the award season is heating up. Twenty-three players have been named finalists for nine major college football awards that will be handed out at the Home Depot College Football Awards show broadcast live from Atlantic Dance Hall at Disney's BoardWalk in Lake Buena Vista Thursday. The show will air at 7 p.m. on ESPN. Florida State's Jameis Winston, Texas A&M's Johnny Manziel and Alabama's AJ McCarron lead a star-studded field on display Thursday night. Texas A&M and Florida State lead schools in nominations, with four and three players nominated, respectively.

Coaching carousel

It didn't take long for several high-profile college football jobs to secure new head coaches. USC started the hiring trend when the Trojans brought back Steve Sarkisian to coach the program. Sarkisian's departure left the University of Washington with an opening that the Huskies filled rather quickly by hiring Chris Petersen away from Boise State.

Orange Bowl announces HOF class

A former Florida State star highlights this year's class for the Orange Bowl Hall of Fame. Peter Boulware, who was one of the Seminoles most-dominant pass rushers, joins former Clemson star Terry Kinard and former Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese on being inducted during Orange Bowl Coaches Luncheon on Jan. 2, 2014. Boulware is the seventh player from Florida State to be inducted into the Hall. The Orange Bowl will be played on Jan. 3 at Sun Life Stadium.

ESPN debuts new documentary

Viewers who tune in for the Heisman Trophy Award Show on ESPN Saturday night at 8 p.m. should stick around afterward for a new "30 for 30" documentary titled "Youngtown Boys." The movie explores the journeys of RB Maurice Clarett and former head coach Jim Tressel, who both grew up in the working class town of Youngstown, Ohio, to their time together at Ohio State University where they won a national championship in 2002. The film debuts at 9 p.m. on ESPN.

On the Web

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